Smithsonian.com

Police officers in front of the Brazilian National Congress are summoned to contain protestors against corruption, who were attempting to invade the building with brooms for a symbolic cleansing. The photographer zeroed in on the officers for this shot to create mystery about whom they were chasing.
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(Photo by Olivier Boëls.)

Three girls take a break from the day inside a small Greek Orthodox Church in Nazareth. The camera used is a Canon 3D.
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(Photo by Ilan Fain.)

A barber interacts with a client at the end of a day, illuminated by a single light bulb. “The harsh single light source reveals the simple surroundings while retaining enough detail in the mirror to provide a multidimensional view of the subjects,” says the photographer, who shot the scene with a Nikon D90 with 18-200mm Nikon VR ED lens.
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(Photo by Abhijit Dey.)

Long droughts spell trouble for most citizens, but they also bring salt for farmers. The photographer used a Canon 5D Mark II.
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(Photo by Alamsyah Rauf.)

A group of worshippers celebrated a Hindu festival devoted to the deities Shiva and Shakti in Bangladesh. The photographer shot this image with a Canon EOS 40D.
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(Photo by Md Akhlas Uddin.)

Mosquito nets like these help protect people in the Republic of Congo from contracting malaria. The photographer, who captured the image of this baby with a Canon 5D Mark II, was documenting humanitarian efforts by the United Methodist Committee on Relief, which donated these nets to the Congolese villagers.
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(Photo by Paolo Patruno.)

Four Yucuna tribesmen stand dressed for the Baile del Muñeco, or “puppet dance,” an annual event during which they celebrate the abundance of the chontaduro fruit. “They are standing strong amidst the trees, both its protectors and its guardians, in a time of enormous pressure on the environment,” says Calvert, who photographed them with a Hasselblad HD311.
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(Photo by Piers Calvert.)

A farmer dries rice in the hot sun, which helps drain moisture from crops when the harvest season arrives. The photographer used a Canon 5D Mark II.
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(Photo by Alamsyah Rauf.)

This day laborer works at a chemical drum recycling plant, carrying 15-kilogram drums and piling them up.
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(Photo by Raihan Parvez.)

The photographer took this self-portrait using a Canon 550D. "This image is important to me because of my Rastafarian culture," Melamu said. "In my culture, females are known as queens, and the image I took represents me as a bust of the Queen Nefertiti in Egypt."
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(Photo by Selwane Evodia Melamu.)